springer



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No Model.)

T. G. SPRINGER. PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE 01-" GAS.

Patented Aug. 29, 1882.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

' (N0 Model.)

T. G. SPRINGER. PROGESS OP AND APPARATUS FOR'THE. MANUFACTURE 01?- GAS.No. 263.611.

Patented Aug. 29, 1882.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THEODORE G. SPRINGER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

PROCESS OF AND APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE SPECIFICATION forming partof Letters Patent No. 263,611, dated August 29,

'OF GAS.

Application filed April 25, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Beit known that I, THEODORE G. SPRINGER, of New York, in the county ofNew York, and

in the State of New York, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Process of and Apparatus for the Manufacture of Gas; andI do herebytdeclare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawin gs,and to the letters of reference marked thereon, making a part of thisspecification.

This invention relates to certain i mprovements in the manufacture ofgas; and it has for its objects to provide certain means whereby a bodyof carbonaceous material may be heated to incandescence and the heatutilized and stored up in amass of refractory material, and the wasteheat employed to superheat the steam to be decomposed subsequently, inconnection with liquid hydrocarbons, to produce a fixed gas, as morefully hereinafter specified. These objects I attain by the meansillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents avertical sectional view of my apparatus, and Fig. 2 a horizontalsectional view taken on the line 00 w of Fig. l.

The letter A indicates the shell of the main body of my apparatus, whichis constructed preferably of wrought-iron and mounted on a suitablebase, B, of brick-work or masonry. The interior of the shell is built upof brickwork or masonry, and is formed with two chambers, O and D, asindicated. The chamber D is designed to contain bituminous coal, wood,or other carbonaceous gas-producing material, and is provided with agrate, E, near the bot tom, forming an ash pit or chamber, F, below. Theupper part of each chamber is provided with a flue or passage,(indicated respectively by theletters H and I,) which are provided withsuitable covers, L M, which can be clamped by suitable means, so as toform gas-tight joints. These tubes or passages are for the purpose offillingthe chambers with carbonaceous and refractory material. Thechamber 0 is provided with an arched partition, N, which is perforated,as indicated by the letter O, forming a chamber, P, below.

The letter R indicates a pipe connecting the upper parts of the chambersO and D, forthe purpose more fully hereinafter specified.

The letter S indicates an air-pipe leading inl to the ash pit or chamberF in the lower part of the chamber D, through which air may heintroduced to sustain the combustion of the incandescent material. Fromthe upper part of the chamber D extends a pipe, U, communicating with anannular flue,V, formed in the body of the apparatus. The said fluecommunicates by a pipe, W, with a chamber, (3, and is provided with acoilof pipe, A, extending from a suitable steam-generator, andconnecting, by means of a pipe, B", with the ash pit or cham'berT, forthe purpose more fully hereinafter specified.

The. letter 0 indicates a pipe leading from the chamberP to the main.The said pipe is provided with a branch pipe, D, leading to a chamber,E, which consists of a metallic casing, F,'having a lining of firebrick,G, as indicated. The said chamber is provided with a pipe or passage, H,for filling, which has a cover, I, by means of which it may be securelyclosed, and a pipe, L, at the top for the admission of steam.

The letter K indicates an air-pipe leading from a suitableair-compressor into the chamber E, and L a pipe leading from saidchamber to the ash-pit F of the chamber ll).

The pipe R is provided with a damper, R, by means of which directcommunication between the two chambers G and D may be cut through theannular flue from the compartment D to the compartment 0. I

The pipe D is provided with a damper, D by means of which the gases maybe cut off from the chamber E and passed directly into the main.

A portion of the superheated steam from the chamber E and a portion tothe ash-pit F, or the steam may be supplied from either alone.

The operation of my invention isas follows:

nous coal or other carbonaceous material,which is properly ignited, andthe chamber 0 being charged with refractory material, as indicated, thecharge in the compartment D is raised to incandescence by a blast of airintroduced by the air-pipe leading into the ash-pit. The heated gasesand products of combustion pass over into the chamber- 0 and through therefractory material contained therein, where they off, so as to causethe gases and vapors to pass The chamber D being charged with bitumirecmaybe passed through the coil A are burned, air being admitted tosupportcombustion through the pipe S, heating the same, so as to retainthe heat and store it up for future use. The gaseous products, afterpassing through the chamber 0, are conducted through the chamber E,which is likewise charged with refractory material, which absorbs andstores up any heat that the products of combustion may still contain, tobe afterward utilized for superheating the steam to be decomposed andemployed in the manufacture of a permanent gas. When the refractorymaterial is raised to a proper temperature the air-blast is stopped andsteam, superheated or otherwise, is turned on into the ash pit orchamber F, and as it passes up into the body of incandescent material itis converted into water-gas, which passes over into the chamber (3.Liquid hydrocarbon, during the operation, is supplied through the pipe Nto the upper part of the chamber 1), where it is volatilized, and passesover with the water-gas through the annular flue V to the chamber 0, thedirect passage through the pipe It being cut off by means of the damperIt. In order to prevent the hydrocarbon from being burned by the intenseheat as it passes into the ,annular flue, and to utilize such heat, acurrent of steam is passed through the coiled pipe, where it issuperheated, and it is afterward passed into the ash-pit ot' the chamberD through the pipe 13, to be decomposed and converted into gas.

' lhe heat stored up in the chamber E is utilized also for superheatingsteam, to be supplied to the chamber D through the pipes L. Dhe combinedgases passing from the chamber I) through the annular flue 'V aredecomposed and fixed or converted into a permanent gas in the chamber 0,which passes off tothe main through the pipe 0.

In order to keep the valves cool, the pipes in their immediateneighborhood are provided with water-spaces D connecting with suitablewater-pipes, whereby a current of water may be caused to circulatearound the pipes to keep down the heat.

' In the present application I have shown and described agenerating-furnace and fixing and superheating chambers supplied withretractory material and connected with each other by flues, the furnaceand chambers being provided with pipes for the admission of air andsteam; but these I do not claim, as they form the subject-matter in partof another application filed by me of even date herewith.

Having thus described myinvention,what I claim, and desire to secure byLetters Patent, 1s-

1. In the manufacture of water-gas, the process of utilizing the heatand waste gases resulting from raising the carbonaceous material toincandescence by an air-blast, which consists in burning the gases bythe admission of air in contact with a body of refractory material andstoring the heat, then causing complete combustion of any remainingunburned carbon or gas by the admission of a second blast of air andstoring the heat in a second body of refractory material, thensuperheating steam in one body of hot refractory material, thendecomposing said steam by bring- I in g it in contact with incandescentcarbon and fixing the resultant gases in the other body of hotrefractory material.

2. In combination with the generating and fixing chambers, the annularflue connecting the same, through which the hot gases and vapors pass,substantially as specified.

3. In combination with the combustion and fixing chambers, provided witha connectingflue, the coiled steam-pipe extending through the flue,whereby the temperature of the flue may be controlled and the heat ofthe hot gases utilized to superheat the steam to be subsequentlydecomposed, substantially as specitied.

4. In combination with the combustion and fixing chambers, theheating-chamber containing refractory material, connected as described,and the steam-pipe leading to and from the same and to thecombustion-chamber, whereby the waste heat of the gaseous products ofcombustion passing through the fixing-chamber may be stored up andutilized to superheat the, steam to be decomposed, substantially asspecified.

5. In combination with the decomposing and fixing chambers and theannular fine, the connecting-pipe It and the damper It, whereby directcommunication is cut ott' between the chambers O D and the vapors andgases caused to pass through the annular flue, substantially asspecified.

6. In combination with the chambers U and E and connecting-pipes,thedamper D Whereby the gases may be shut from the chamber E and passeddirectly to the main, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses,this 24th day of April, 1882.

THEO. Gr. SPRINGER.

Witnesses:

J. J. MCCARTHY, CHAS. D. DAVIS.

